55 Percent of Venice Under Acqua Alta, Italy
Three main factors have worsened the high water in Venice, experts say; the rising floor of the lagoon caused by incoming silt, the subsidence of the city by the extraction of methane gas in the sea off Venice, and the worldwide increase in sea levels caused by global warming.
Desalination Projects: Option or Distraction for a Thirsty World?
As populations increase in coastal areas, the demand for desalination most likely will grow as needs for improved clean water supplies grow, and people see all that water nearby as a solution to freshwater scarcity. Yet the process of removing salt from sea water to overcome a worldwide shortage of drinking water could end up worsening the crisis, environmental groups warn.
Cancun’s Beaches: Vanishing Sand and Wasted Money
In a major restoration project last year, millions of cubic yards (meters) of sand were dredged from the sandy bottom of the Caribbean and pumped ashore in Cancun. The project created a seven-mile stretch of beach some 40 to 70 yards (meters) wide, at a cost of about $70 million. It is already washing away.